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The Apple II clone
inside an IBM PC
a feature of Diskman presents
www.diskman.com
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In the 1980s, Diamond Computer Systems produced the Trackstar series of Apple
II compatibles. What sets these clones apart from the rest of the pack, however,
is the fact that each Trackstar is a complete Apple II computer shrunk down to
fit on a single 8-bit ISA card for use with IBM PCs and compatibles.
That's right! Just install the Trackstar into a free slot, and your IBM PC instantly
becomes two computers in one. You can even switch back and forth between Apple II and
PC modes at any time! It's pretty wild. And since the Trackstar essentially is,
for all intents and purposes, a “real” Apple II, there is a very high degree
of software compatibility.
In its heyday, the Trackstar was a big deal: it increased the number of software
packages available to PC owners, from business applications to games, by the
thousands. Since the advent of software-based Apple II emulators, the Trackstar
has become more of a novelty — but what a novelty! — and
collector's item.
As a “collect to use” kind of guy, I get a lot of mileage out of
my Trackstars. With the help of this website, you'll have a head start on
following suit.
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This website focuses primarily on the Trackstar E, which is the most advanced
of the Trackstar line. A clone of the Apple IIe, the Trackstar E boasts 128 kB of
RAM, and support for all Apple IIe graphic modes. It can either be connected directly
to a composite monitor or, by means of a special, included cable, “intercept”
the PC's graphic card signal and switch between the Apple II and PC display as
needed. Though the PC's own floppy disk drives can be used to read and write real
Apple II disks, connecting an authentic Apple II floppy drive directly to the Trackstar
card increases compatibility, especially with copy-protected software. Custom
ProDOS hard drive images are also supported.
But the most desirable feature of the Trackstar E, in my opinion, is its
ability to read the full contents of real Apple II disks into memory, then
store them as individual files on the PC's hard drive. This allows the user
to enjoy whatever Apple II software he or she desires without ever having to
insert a floppy disk! It's wonderful. And it's the primary reason why I created
this website: to share the hundreds of disk images I've created myself, using
my beloved Trackstar E with the Floppy Emu connected to it.
The Trackstar works best in an older machine, 386-class or lower, as these
were the machines it was originally designed to be compatible with. 486-class
or higher machines will need to have their cache disabled in order for the
Trackstar to work properly. This can usually be accomplished via the computer's
BIOS settings, or by using the ICD utility.
The fastest machine I've successfully used my Trackstar E in is a Pentium II
running at 133 MHz, with its cache disabled. Newer, faster machines may or may
not be fully compatible.
Are you tired of reading yet? Great. Let's get to the goodies. |
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· · · Trackstar E software & documentation · · · |
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In order to use the Trackstar E, you'll need a copy of its software. You'll
probably want the manual too because, while not a thrilling read, it provides
some useful information about the device, such as how to install and operate it.
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· · · Apple II floppy disk images for use with the Trackstar E · · · |
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I've whiled away many an hour creating hundreds of floppy disk images so you
don't have to. The lion's share of them are based on the respectful and respectable
“clean” deprotection efforts of 4am and san inc:
archivists extraordinaire.
The Trackstar E uses its own proprietary disk image format called Trackstore.
Trackstore floppy disk images are denoted by the APP file extension. They must
be stored in the same directory as the Trackstar software if they are to be used
from a hard drive, or from the main directory of a floppy disk. Subdirectories
are not supported.
Don't let the 8.3 character file names fool you! Each Trackstore file can
hold a description of its contents, up to 46 characters in length, making it
easy to understand which software programs you have available. These helpful
descriptions will be displayed on the screen whenever you access the Trackstore
disk image selection menu.
It is possible to create Trackstar-compatible disk images using CiderPress.
However, such disk images will load far slower than those created using the
Trackstar's own software. Thus it is always recommended to use the Trackstar
itself to create disk images.
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· · · Apple II hard drive images for use with the Trackstar E · · · |
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In addition to Apple II floppy disks and disk images, the Trackstar E may
also make use of up to two ProDOS hard drive images at once. The maximum image
size is ten megabytes. For the Trackstar to find and use the images as virtual
hard drives, their filenames must be PRODOS.HD1 and PRODOS.HD2. Use the TSUTILIT.COM
program to configure all your drives.
It is possible to create Trackstar-compatible hard drive images using CiderPress;
the correct file format is ProDOS “Unadorned raw data,” which ordinarily
has the .PO extension ( i.e. GAMES.PO ). Be sure to rename your custom images
to either PRODOS.HD1 or PRODOS.HD2 before attempting to use them with the Trackstar.
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· · · But... what about the Trackstar 128? · · · |
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Oh yeah, almost forgot about that one. When they engineered the Trackstar 128,
the brilliant minds at Diamond Computer Systems thought it would be a keen idea to
copy protect the Utility Program disk that is required to operate the device. This didn't
make a whole heck of a lot of sense, considering the software is completely
useless without the hardware. Trackstar 128 owners, of course, would want to
create backups of the original disk just in case it got damaged or suffered
data corruption. But... nope! Too bad.
This pointless copy protection nonsense causes a dilemma for those who purchase
the Trackstar 128 nowadays, especially as very few of the units for sale come with
an original copy of the Utility Program disk. The situation seemed hopeless until 2016, when
a generous chap named Morley Krete successfully archived the Utility Program disk using
the KryoFlux.
Hooray!!
Note that you'll need to own a KryoFlux in order to write the disk image to a 360 kB
5¼” floppy disk. You'll also need to own the floppy disk adapter cable that
came bundled with the Trackstar 128, and have it properly installed in your machine.
Why? Because unlike with the Trackstar E, the Trackstar 128 software will not allow
you to operate the device unless it detects the floppy drive connection. Pretty lame, huh?
The Trackstar 128 cannot make use of Trackstore disk images nor ProDOS hard drive
images. You're limited to real, physical Apple II floppy disks. The PC's own
drives can be used to read and write real Apple II disks, and / or you can
connect an authentic Apple II floppy drive directly to the Trackstar 128 for
maximum compatibility.
Protip: The Trackstar 128 was a popular add-on for the Tandy 1000 line of PC
compatibles. So if you're having trouble finding a Trackstar 128 for sale,
sniff around Tandy 1000 sales listings to see if you can spot a Trackstar
in one of the machines.
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· · · And now for something completely different: The Quadram Quadlink · · · |
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The Quadlink, from Quadram Corporation, was an earlier attempt at
producing a complete Apple II on a PC ISA card. This device, however, is quite
limited compared to the Trackstar line in that it can only access Apple II disks
via the PC's own floppy drives, only sports 64 kB of RAM, does not support the
Double Hi-Res graphics mode, et cetera.
However as the Quadlink seems to make use of an authentic Apple II ROM rather
than a reverse-engineered one, compatibility is higher than that of the Trackstar.
The Quadlink also does a much better job than the Trackstar in its output of
certain Apple II sound; specifically, digital audio and tricks like “multiple
voice music” sound great on the Quadlink but spotty at best on the Trackstar.
BUT!! Much like Diamond Computer Systems did with their Trackstar 128, Quadram
decided to be paranoid by copy protecting the program disk needed to operate
the Quadlink. What a bunch of maroons. First thing, the Quadlink program asks
the user to insert the FILER disk. This is an Apple II disk with a few basic
utilities on it. Whoop-de-doo. The Quadlink program must verify this disk's
copy protection scheme before the user can access Apple II mode.
Luckily, a working disk image of the FILER disk is readily available, so if
the Quadlink you bought came without the disk, like mine did, you'll still be
able to use it! You'll just need to find a way to write the disk image to
a real 5¼” floppy disk. For this task I used ADTPro.
I've provided the Quadlink software + FILER disk image here. I've also made
available a scanned copy of the MASSIVE tome-sized Quadlink documentation
that, while a bit preachy and pandering, puts the Trackstar's to shame!
Fun fact: A Quadlink and a Trackstar can peacefully coexist in the same
machine, for double the Apple II enjoyment.
Warning: Unlike the Trackstar, the Quadlink only works in machines with an
8088 processor running at 4.77 MHz! I personally recommend the IBM 5160
because it's a full-featured, versatile tank of a machine. To add some pep,
you can follow my lead by installing a 286 “booster” card in your
8088-based machine. Just make sure to choose a card that has a switch to
select between 8088 and 286 mode. One such card is the Orchid Tiny Turbo.
Always flip the switch to 8088 mode before using the Quadlink, as the
Quadlink software will hang on 286+ processors.
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